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Recess: One Shot Drop Dramas

You know, I’m going to have trouble convincing people that I really like Lee Min Ho, given that it’s pretty much three-for-three in me striking out with his dramas. I finally watched Faith yesterday, both episodes at once, and the verdict is a solid “dislike”. It would veer into hate but for the fact that I like Min Ho’s character, and that’s about it. The acting from the two leads ranges from apathetic and devoid of nuance (Min Ho) to freakishly shrill and shrieky from his leading lady Kim Hee Sun (so bad she can give a class on “how not to act”), plus they have no chemistry.

Forget the age difference concerns, watching her almost turned me homicidal. The special efforts were oddly lame and overall I just find the story more interesting than the execution and delivery. I think Faith has so much potential in its mystical fantasy elements mixed with sageuk construct. But I think its miscast in both Lee Min Ho (decent in modern dramas but so far really lacking in sageuk presence) and Kim Hee Sun (just a bad actress, period). It’s a sayonara Faith for me at this stage, this a clearly a drama much better suited for others to enjoy rather than me following along and driving myself batshit insane. However, I realized that I also checked out two episodes into City Hunter(whereas I stuck with probably the worse drama of the lot in Personal Taste because of Son Ye Jin and a desperate hope it would redeem itself – it never did). Noticing this trend led me to wonder – what dramas have been dropped on first impression alone, never to be picked up again regardless of the drama possibly getting better down the line?

This phenomenon I’m discussing isn’t watching a drama until one loses interest somewhere down the road, but genuinely catching one or two episodes and actively deciding not to watch anymore for whatever reason. A few recent notables drama drops for me are:

1. A Gentleman’s Dignity – Hated/loathed the first two episodes, so much immaturity and self-aware wittiness that was in truth witless.

2. Flower Boy Ramyun Shop – Really turned off by the first two episodes, didn’t like the two leads characters or the directing.

3. I Need Romance 2012– Found the first two episodes just terribly set up and executed, and a love story where I don’t care if the OTP fell into a wormhole means it won’t work for me.

4. Rooftop Prince– Loved the premise and the OTP, but hated the execution and the ridiculously evil second leads.

5. Thousand Day Promise– Almost put me to sleep in between the makjang, and since I couldn’t stand the heroine and hers was the story I was supposed to root for, I realized I batted for the other team and needed to leave the game.

6. Heartstrings– I was soooo excited about this one, but the spastic PD camerwork and the lackluster story left me lukewarm.

This list is merely a snapshot of the dramas that have stayed in my memory as actively annoying me right off the bat. There are a lot more dramas I watch and find okay so I continue to trudge along, only to gradually fade away for me until I either forget to keep watching or stop somewhere down the middle and then it promptly disappears into my mental blackhole. At least those dramas on top left an impression with me, albeit a bad one. On an upside, as much as Faith left me cold and activated an all-consuming desire to snark at it, I just watched the first episode of Arang and the Magistrateand found it so utterly perfect and amazing and OMG-I’m-swooning here. And even the first episode of To the Beautiful You isn’t bad at all (Really, it’s quite decent!), so I realize it’s just a matter of aesthetics on what I love and what I don’t. So what dramas left you cold right off the bat?

Haha, I ran away screaming from Love Rain within 15 minutes. That must be a new record or something. Anyways, I didn’t even watch enough LR for it to make this list. But HOMG what little I watched was atrocious.

I read the first four episodes in recaps and then started watching it. It wasn’t bad once into modern times, then about halfway through it just sloooooooowed down and got somewhat ridiculous (omg, we can’t be together but we’re in lurve!11!! *cue angst*).

sigh…Love Rain.. I watched the first maybe 1.5 eps then decided to skip to save my sanity. Jumped to the modern day eps and was cute for maybe another 5-7 ep and then like someone else said just slowed down. Actually it was more like it got bogged down as it went on by the drama among the parents in the story..I would forward to the scenes between the younger leads. And I held on just to see what happens and in the hope it recovers but sadly not to be.

Lee Min Ho in Faith ——-> just has this blank/lost expression EXACTLY! But he wasn’t like this before. I’m so confused as to how/why he suddenly forgot how to act. He is just acting “cool” and “reticent” and instead comes off as looking really constipated and/or bored. And, uhm, that is not acting. I is sad, I really like him.

I dropped City Hunter because I read that manga growing up and what the K-drama did with the story was just impossible for me to accept, but I actually thought Lee Min Ho was all sorts of awesome acting-wise in the first two episodes I watched of CH. I dropped it for other reasons, but I did love what little I saw of him in it. Yuuuuummmmy!

same with me MS. K….i watched faith 2 eps..and the lady is so annoying…i thought it was just me…its just she doesnt fit the role…she was far better when she was a nerd intern…i am also irritated by the sound of her voice…she’s not that convincing…as for LMH…he seems good when he was fighting..but when he was with the girl…it sucks…no chemistry at all.

Kim Hee Sun’s voice is in the pantheon of “worst voices on television”. Nails on a chalkboard. Coupled with her OTT bug-eyed twitchy acting, I feel like I was watching some Sunday afternoon horror movie special and she was in an episode of “The Blob.”

Funny. I rarely drop a drama at 1 or 2 episodes. I guess I know exactly what I want from the dramas I start. My problem is with those who start good but go downhill. Call it noble idiocy of the viewer but I feel so guilty when I loved the start and have to drop at the last third. It’s heartbreaking.

Omg! Loved the first episode of Hana Kimi! Sulli/Minho/Hyunwoo are so adorable. Hope it continues on being awesome, so far though, I sense that this could easily be ruined if they shall walk the darker path. Please stay in the light my precious. Can’t wait to watch Arang! Still waiting on subs tho.

Haeundae Lovers is a tricky one. So overacted, so cheesy, so greasy. My mind is telling me to drop it now, but my heart keeps holding onto it.

The ones I could think of at the moment….

1. City Hunter
I keep trying, but I just always lose focus of what was going on.

2. Iris
Really wanted to get into this. But I just could not continue. It was just so greasy.

3. Baker Kim Tak Goo
Really wanted to watch this because of my latest obsession with Joo Won and Bridal Mask, but I only lasted till the end of the childhood segment. Too much drama for a drama.

4. Love Rain
Could not stand JGK’s 60s hair. Could not stand even looking at Yoona. Really dislike the “I’m so pure and innocent and beautiful” get-up. Also they tried to be all artsy, but I was so bored.

5. Baby Faced Beauty
I dunno, everything about it just irritated me.

6. Tree With Deep Roots
I love Jang Hyuk. I love Song Joong Ki. But this drama just made me feel incredibly sleepy. Like listening to a mono-toned professor read from a book of statistics.

Koala Unnie, good thing you dropped I Need Romance 2012. I should have bailed long time. I do not learn. But I got easily captivated by the cafe owner who goes to orphanages to sing with kids aka, Mr. Perfect Shin Ji Hoon.

I should have bailed Gentlemen’s Dignity as well. I never knew 25, 30s, and 41 year olds could be so immature. At first I found it cute, but got so annoyed throughout the second half.

Lol. It’s funny because I was thinking the exact opposite. Almost every other kdrama blogger (like the dramabean recappers for instance) goes on and on about how insanely hot LMH is, and completely ignores the fact that he can’t act for shit. I think he’s hot too, but when it comes to expressing emotion or having stage presence, he totally sucks.

So finally stumbling across this blogger, who seems like the only one in the bunch who’s not so blinded by the actor’s good looks that she is oblivious to his weak acting… I was really relieved.

So, shoo fly… go somewhere else if all you wanna read are praises and adoration for an actor who can’t even express pain without looking constipated.

Not into Faith either, although i check out the recaps from Dramabeans to see how its doing just cause of LMH. Some of the dramas I’ve dropped right away were Love Rain (no matter how great my love for Jang Geun Seok is, it couldn’t keep me from leaving) Dream High 2 (!st one was better), Fashion King, Ghost and a few more I can’t remember…I guess it depends on my taste but some genres still captivate me if they’re done perfectly (the right cast and execution) For now I’ll stick to my Gaksital, Arang and To the Beautiful You to satisfy my k-drama addiction ^___^

Cinderella Unni. I don’t know…despite LOVING both of the leads I just…I don’t know. Something about it just didn’t capture my interest enough to continue watching it. And really, that’s what it’s all about.

Also, for some reason, My Girlfriend is a Gumiho. Again, love both the leads in that show but it just never held my attention past the fourth episode.

Maybe I just have crappy taste in dramas though because for some reason I stuck through all of Fashion King. Fairly early on I realized how bad it was but I couldn’t stop watching and then it almost became a challenge to just see it through to the end.

The age difference really bothered me before watching faith. After the first two episodes, the age differrence was tolerable. However, there was too much poltics going on and there wasnt any couple to root for. Thus, i will probably skim through it or skim through the recaps if i have nt better to do lol on the other hand, hana kimi ( korean version) was actually okie. I cracked up in the begining when the blondy was like hes korean. I laughed so hard because he is obviously korean for representing korea ( wats the chance that hes not korean) then she said ” you dont have to do this” i laughed again for her poor acting. I wish she will get more screen time.

I agree with some of your list and didn’t finish 3 of 5.
I really like FBRS, though.

As far as dropped after one or two eps?
I have to go deep in the Dramafever archives for that answer:
Yacha, Super Rookie, Stars Falling from the Sky, The Woman who Still Wants to Marry, Say You Love Me, Piano, Athena, Dong Yi, Green Rose, Shoot for the Star and Queen Seon Duk.
I have to chalk up some of these to “wasn’t in the mood” and some had to do with the pacing, or too slap sticky and loud.

I usually get to 5 or 6 before finally running screaming, and still there are some that I stopped with one or two eps left. Just couldn’t take it anymore…whatever it was…

I just dont get the hype for CITY HUNTER!! Dont like the main girl. Dr. Jin–>really bad storyline!!! Hopefully, Faith wont follow the same path (one person being injured/about to die in each episode) Some scenes was too gruesome to watch!!! is it really necessary!!!!!!! its not a freaking horror drama!!!

Review for 2012
1) BIG = big disappointment
2) Faith = dont have any faith for FAITH
3)Fashion king = worst scriptwriters (actually they should just write the first few episodes and then just change the writers after 5 episodes)

I thought lee min ho was improving as an actor but not a lot of improvement but improving nonetheless but FAITH just dropped his potential to less than zero to me. He seem SO BORED which doesn’t do well with me. I need him to show some energy in his acting because it is seeming like he could care less if he doesn’t act anymore

Yeah, he wasn’t this bad in City Hunter. For some reason he’s doing really poorly as Choi Young. Did his acting skill actually regressed with time? All the supporting actors in Faith performed really well, but LMH seems like a fish-out-of-water in this sageuk. Despite looking good in his costume, he doesn’t have the acting chops to convincingly portray a powerful, charismatic warrior.

LOL – a lot of dramas for me, but not to say that somewhere later in life, I didn’t pick them up again and like them. Recent ones that I remember:

1) Faith (OMG!! I’m so happy you wrote this. I was beginning to think I was the only one who did not enjoy it despite loving LMH). KHS annoys the heck out of me. I wasn’t a fan of hers before, and I’m still not now. But I really do hope she improves. LMH does looks really good though.
2) Best Love – just couldn’t get into it.
3) City Hunter – dropped it for similar reasons. LHM was quite good in the scenes I saw. PMY – eh.
4) Fashion King – WTH?! I should have dropped this one at episode 1.
5) Athena – despite my great love for JSW – I just couldn’t get past ep 2.
6) King 2 Hearts – I just couldn’t get into it. But I love both leads. I think this was a matter of just not being the right timing for me to watch it.
7) A whole ton of Jdramas that I tried this year but just couldn’t get into. RMPW is one. Maybe I dabbled in ep 3, I have no recollection.

everything else on your list, i can’t really argue, but i have to point out that i disagree with you on the king 2 hearts…you really have to give that one a try, it’s a really great drama unless you’re into different genre of dramas…in the king 2 hearts, the beginning was a little draggy before it hit the action, but once you past the first few episodes, the drama gets really good

I dropped City Hunter after 5 eps. I planned to watch with it with my fiance but he was bored with it and I got bored with it even though I loved the recaps. I think it was one of those shows that are better via recaps than live. I still don’t get LMH mania *shrugs shoulders*

I dropped Harvest Villa after 1 episode as I found the juxtaposition of the music the plotting strange.

I haven’t watched FBRS or Gentleman’s Dignity yet. Don’t know if I will.

I watched Roof-top prince until episode 18 as I was waiting for them to go back to Joseon which they only did in the last episode. I still don’t understand why the villains did what they did. It’s like they intentionally chose the hard way instead of the easy way staring right in their face. Yoochun’s character annoyed me and Park Ha became dumber and dumber as the series went on.

For some reason I have a morbid fascination with Dr. Jin as am still watching it even though I know it sucks, the lead actors suck, directing sucks, writing sucks, etc. It is an easy watch for me as am not invested in any character just want to know what happens and am puzzled how something so good (Japanese JIN) became so bad LOL! And wondering why PMY’s acting is regressing after seeing her in Ja Myung Go.

I can’t wait to watch Arang and maybe check out a few epsiodes of Faith. Giving Beutiful You a pass as it reminds me of the movie ‘She’s the man.’

For some unknown reason I like the quirkiness and potential story of Faith so I will give it a couple more episodes to see how it develops.

I will wait for Koala’s recap of Arang so I can rave about my love for that show there.

I am in the mood at this time to watch dramas with battles and armor so not interested in TTBY maybe later this year if I am in the mood I will marathon TTBY.

Let me list a couple of dramas I dropped within the first or second episode.

Dream High 2 -definitely wasn’t like Dream High so lost interest
Love Rain – I really tried but not even JGS or Yoona could draw me in.
Dr Jin – I don’t think I need to say what was wrong with that drama.
Fashion King – sorry but the female lead just drove me batty.
B.O.F. – Yes I still can’t get past episode 2 I don’t know why maybe
it’s the director’s crappy directing.
Mary stayed out all night – I also can’t get past episode 2

and my list can go on and on.

I am looking out for that Arang recap Koala so we can spazz about the awesomeness of this drama!

I would sooo sooo much drop AGD due to that one freaking, whining, and crying girl. However, I finished it and still do not like her… At least, I am happy that I like everyone else in that drama. Dr. WTF Jin dropped.. A Tree with Deep Roots. I thought it was interesting but stopped due to real life being busy. Dong Yi dropped it.. Spy Myung wol, Lie to Me, Scent of Women, The Moon Embrace Sun, Protect the Boss, and Mary Stayed Out all night dropped for a few episodes… That is about it..

For the new kdramas.. I shall wait for few more episodes to watch it to see if I like it or not..

I remember one I could not get through the first 2 ep – Secret Garden. From what I remember, he was just too obnoxious and couldn’t stand the abuse so I bailed even though it was very popular. I didn’t get the appeal. But I will always remember that intro part for HJW where she was doing the stunt with the bike and fights, that was cool and put her in my list of actresses to keep an eye on.

Ooh! I totally agree. I did not like the male lead in that show at all. So abusive! I dislike how he always completely disregard whatever the heroine say, like her opinion and what she wants doesn’t matter as long as he gets his way. He insults her, then stalks her… asks her to be his mistress, then acts all confused when she denied him. What a prick. This show actually offends me. Why does this kind of behavior not offend more women? Do y’all like to be treated this way by guys so you think it’s hot that a character is doing this to his love interest on screen? ugh…

yes it did actually offend me a bit too so I refused to spend any more time watching it even though I usually try to finish a drama I start. But it was making my blood boil. I don’t even remember what I watched just remember my reaction to it (shows you how strong it was).
I noted this propensity for arrogant, disrespectful know-it-all, insulting male leads in kdramas to a couple korean friends a while back and they just said it was quite common/popular there. But I’m with you, I couldn’t get why women would like watching these shows that are demeaning esp since I’m guessing majority of viewers are female. I’m probably overthinking LOL!
I think there’s a bit more variety in archetype of male leads in jdramas and twdramas from my observation but I could be wrong.

I really love these “Recess” posts. I’m including dramas that I dropped after one or two episodes, only to pick up later (because I kept hearing how great they were from respected sources on the interwebs) and drop AGAIN after five episodes when I realized that no, this really is not my thing.

You’re Beautiful
Nobuta Wo Produce
Gloria
Can’t Lose
Coffee House (though I must admit, a large part of the reason for dropping that one was that I read about what a douche the main character was/became/continued to be throughout the series & to the end. The first episode wasn’t good enough to make me not care about that.)
Goong (I just could not get into Yoon Eun Hye’s character)
He Who Can’t Marry (didn’t dislike it, but I felt no desire to continue watching)
Love & Marriage
Playful Kiss
Wild Romance

For the record, I tried the first episode of Flower Boy Ramyun shop and dropped it like a hot potato–largely because I was not a huge fan of the lead female character. Then, b/c of good word of mouth about the show, I tried it again and fell IN LOVE after four episodes. Seriously in love. It’s now one of my all-time favorites. So, to those of you thinking of giving it another shot…do it!!!

OH! And I have to add to this: GAKSITAAAAAAAAAAALLLLLL. Ok, maybe I made to episode 3 or 4, I can’t remember exactly. I know a lot of people think it’s the best thing since sliced bread, but it was just a bit too intense and shouty for my liking. I loved episode 1, but episode 2 basically felt exactly the same to me: torture torture torture GAKSITAL torture. I can see why everyone loves it, but it just wasn’t my thing.

I love the main actor!! the plot is just soo blah!!! The main girl gets kidnapped or arrested then released/saved in almost every episodes omg. I’m pretty sure she would get kidnapped again on the last episode and the main guy will sacrifice his life saving her!!

@rearwindow – (thank you) I thought I was the only viewer out here in kdrama-land who couldn’t get past episode 2 of Gaksital. From the very beginning it showed that it was going to have someone beat half to death, or shot…or both, all the time/everytime.

Plus, the lead actor gives off wierd-face vibes to me. I read all over other forums about how people think he’s soooooo HOT, while I’m thinking he looks like he’s missing a chromosome. (something is just…off) So anyway— constant beatings, torture and murder is not entertaining to me — there’s just not a story compelling enough to cause me to voluntarily sit through that.

Oh noes, Nobuta wo Produce!! *sad face* That’s my all-time favourite drama! Everything about it resounded with me and would bring me to tears. I cried so much while watching it. Heck, even listening to some of the tracks on the OST get me teary-eyed. I do agree with you that it’s a little out there, a very eccentric world, and hard to get into. I was about to drop it as well but the hook for me was (in Ep 1) when the bullies are chasing Nobuko, she makes a silent plea for help, and the awesome Shuji hunts her throughout school to rescue her. I watched that entire sequence with a lump in my throat and tears welling up my eyes!

I know!! I SO wanted to like it! That was a show that I gave a second chance b/c of all the great things I heard about it (I think you may have actually recommended it to me over at Dramabeans). I think I watched up until episode 6 or so and finally had to admit that it’s just not my thing. This may be sacrilegious to say for all of the Nobuta lovers, but some of my qualms w/the how had to do with the 2nd lead male actor. He just seemed so over the top…I couldn’t relate to him.

There were certainly some mesmerizing parts, though. When she was running through the school I had serious goosebumps. All of the bullying was incredibly moving–so horrifying and realistically drawn. I also loved how Nobuko’s connection to Shuji was shaping up.

Out of the three characters Akira was my least favourite as well. Initially I thought to myself, “W.T.F is wrong with this kid?” but like Shuji resigned myself to his cray cray, heh. If it weren’t for Kame’s understated portrayal of Shuji (which balanced Akira’s eccentricities) I too would’ve shucked this show mid-way through.

Well you tried!! =) Sometimes we take dramas too seriously….it’s o.k. that not everyone will love my favourite!! <3

Hey chingus. Hhhmm, all the people waiting for Arang recaps…..I’d love to make you guys happy, but lest anyone forget that I’m still on vacation! You know, chilling, hanging with friends and family, shopping, generally having a fabulous time? Not sure when the recaps will be up, or if I’ll do a massive episodes 1-4 recap to set myself up for recapping live once I get back. This drama is currently PERFECT even in one short episode.

yo those waiting for Arang recaps and cannot wait can always read at dramabeans since koala has her own life and is on vacation hahah….sometimes, i even read recaps for the same drama from both koala and dramabeans 🙂

Hello unnie, hope u r enjoying ur holiday. Great that u r liking it heheh, I’ve been anticipated ur reply in regards to this.. Looking forward for the recap compilations 1-4!! For the time being, hope u r having a good good rest :}

I understand that dramas, much like everything else, vary from person to person. While I completely respect your thoughts and opinions about shows aforementioned and reasons for dropping, I can’t help but think that dropping them on a 1-2 episodes basis and completely discrediting them to be a little too judgmental.

Some shows started really slow but picked up its pace – at a price, of course, cos they lose their early viewers but some really are like.. fine wine, people would say? Gets better with age? (I don’t drink). So I love this post because it’s something different and always love how you’ll say it as you think but I personally feel that while it’s completely acceptable to drop dramas early if your gut feeling tells you they’re flops, I feel like putting labels on them (Very Bad, for example) and passing said-labels on to others is a little much when one never did continue the series cos one left too early in the game. I guess I’m just trying to attest that some dramas deserve a chance, or two – or more.

But I do agree and understand – here’s where all the fun comes in; different takes and opinions on shows!

i rarely drop dramas especially if it’s on “going”,but for faith it has a big problem for me !! i just Don’t like the main actress and i didn’t even stand to watch the whole long teaser !!well at least i complete that one:p but i don’t think that i will check the drama any time soon ..though i might read some of the recaps in the other blogs

for the 2012 dramas that i watched and complete 😛
1.BIG:it started with a great potential but it went really bad down the road ,,,i couldn’t stand how silly the main actress is and i want it more of the real kyun-joon ><

2. Gentlemen dignity:it was really hard for me to complete this one ,,,but i did today finally 😀 and i loved the ending 😛

3. i need romance 2012 : i didnt watch the first one ,so i dont have any thing to compare it with ,,, but i hate how the drama turn in to . i was really in to the "perfect coffee guy"

4. rooftop prince : it was so over acted i think in the begging and draggy in the other half but i love how it made me cry "LIKE A LOT"

5.I do I do : i was really interested in this one but i lost my interest in the half way
i currently watching Haeundae.Lovers : it's kind of over acted but i kind of like it 😛 so i will stick to it and see what it might hold for the future .
rich man poor woman : i never complete j-drama and i mostly drop it from the first few ep along with the TW-drama which are draggy and over acted sometimes but i think it's different for RMPW i just love every ep of it

i will wait for the second ep of "TO THE BEAUTIFUL YOU" so i can watch them at once

Paradise Ranch. I made a 4ep-rule where I will drop any drama that doesn’t hold my interest after 4 episodes. Clearly I couldn’t stuck by it. PR was so boring and annoying that I couldn’t handle more than 2eps.

There’re also dramas like Best Love and City Hunter that I watched in hopes that I would grow to love them like the rest of the world, but I realised I was just forcing myself so I usually quit them half-way through.

Dream High 2 was a big disappointment, glad I dropped it early.FBRS could’ve been good if it wasn’t for JIW’s aggravating character. Myung Wol the Spy had a great set up but the execution was terrible.

Faith was very meh. The endings are going to ruin the drama lol.
I think the problem with the actresses’ voice is that everyone else’s is kinda low and then her’s is normally high, but it just seems a lot higher in that setting.

Regarding the age gap: I personally don’t think it’s too bad. I just can’t stand people who are like “OMG SHE’S AN OLD HAGG EWWW.” And most of them are okay with SSH and PMY in Dr. Jin. sigh double standards *smh*

Arang was fantastic! I only watched it with like 20% subs but I felt like I understood everything lol xD
Super funny, cute, and totally lovable! Welcome back Lee Jun Ki!

Anyway, I’m kinda new to this website, but I enjoy your recaps Koala-shi (I have no idea what to call you I’m sorry ;;___;;)
Thanks for your time and hard work!

We like to see people together who fit our standards of beauty. Men generally retain their youth much better than women (minus plastic surgery) so seeing a very young woman and and an older man together does not ring any bells. Sucks, but that’s how the world works.

I feel that female actresses always get the brunt of the hate. Male actors can overact/underact the hell they want & they hardly suffer as much criticism. They do but it’s mostly “Damn, his acting is horrible but he’s soooo pretty/seems like a nice guy” *cough*SSH*cough* while the female actresses get called plastic & hags on top of getting called out on their bad acting. It kinda makes me sad.

As for KHS, I think she’s serviceable as with LMH. She overacts & he looks slightly stoned. Some gaping plot holes with suuuuper dragged out fighting scenes (Unimpressed with the camera work!) but nevertheless still a great story that’s a lot of fun!

I’ve been anticipating “Faith” for a long time now. The trailer reminded me of “Legend” and I wanted to see my baby Lee Phillip again.

But I was so disappointed. Seriously. I WANTED to like it, but I just don’t.

I loved “City Hunter” and LMH’s performance in that drama. But here he simply reads the lines like a robot and with a blank face. And the actress is as bad as I thought she’d be.
But my main problem with the drama is the EDITING! The story doesn’t flow right. The characters aren’t introduced the right way. And everything looks CHEAP somehow.

I’ll keep watching simply because I have WAY too much free time on my hands.

Since you’re talking about dramas you drop based on first impression, what about dramas you never give a chance to impress you at all? I’m talking Gaksital here. It’s slick, thrilling and never pulls any punches regarding its subject matter. Maybe it’s time you give your Joowon phobia a rest?:)

thank god for some people who are decent enough to drop dramas which turn them off, give critical remarks & move on..unlike people who cant seem to stop watching until the end eventhough the dramas suck & rave their bad review over & over again without regard of other people who love the dramas they hate (i’m referring to the viewers of the other famous blog who does drama recaps, specifically: the Big drama recaps. I just don’t get it – if they don’t like it, just drop it. leave it alone, don’t watch it anymore. but they keep watching & giving nasty remarks..really broke my heart). Anyway..my list is quite short: i’m turned-off by any drama with Kang Ji Hwan in it..i just don’t know why..no chemistry maybe? hehehe 😀 *need to quickly apologise to all KJH’s fans – sorry guys!*

Because they like to keep their promise to recap it? They are professional to not give up and threw it away? They don’t do hating recaps, they just show the flaws of the drama. Sometimes they don’t feel the same of us, I know how is to feel like the drama you like be crushed. For example I liked Bad Guy and my god everyone talks bad about it LOL but I won’t die.

***i’m referring to the viewers of the other famous blog who does drama recaps*** just copied this in case you missed it. i meant the veiwers, not the blogger. it’s not because i hate the fact that my fav drama’s being crushed. it’s the people who say they don’t like the drama, but keep watching it & keep crushing it. like i said, if you don’t like it, just leave it alone. i’m fine with the blogger, though. they’re just doing what they’ve been doing (like, keeping promises? yah..)

hahaha..love all the list everyone list -ve drama.Almost all I would agree but it depends on individual taste..for me it all on the acting of the cast especially the lead and my favorite actors..also the story line..Thanks to you and your blog especially your recaps,it help me to understand some of the story..and help me to choose what type of drama to watch..thanks again I might watch Arang just for Lee Jun Ki…Faith for the witty story..the leading lady a yuck for me..so thanks again

Faith (2 ep great reason for me to stay away to save my sanity)isodes in, LMH does nothing to me and I’m still wondering why KHS bothered to wait YEARS for this drama and still be mediocre in it.)
Boys Before Flowers (LMH, Gu Hye Sung and Kim Hyung Jung combo)
Shining Inheritance
Flower Boy Ramyun Shop (Hated everything about it.)
Lie To Me (Same reason)
Color of Woman (What was the purpose of that drama, again?)
Mary Stayed Out All Night (Jang Geun Suk looks too much like a girl for me to take him serious. This and the batshit crazy plot)
Love Rain (same JGS allergy and Yoona was another great reason to stay away)
Fashion King (My personal record: 30 minutes long)
A Gentleman’s Dignity (I runned away screaming)
The Musical (Gu Hye Sung, girl, I try, but why are you so freaking irritating? If someday you choose better projects I may give you another chance.)
Dr.Jin (Self-explanatory)

from your list, i did not have the strength to watch ATD. i loved reading the recaps at DB, i even cry but it’s too much on my plate to watch the drama.

i, usually, am very patient with the dramas i watched and even if episodes 1-2 sucks i still continue till i can’t anymore but some dramas are just too trying for me to do this, here is my personal list:

1. MSOAN – i just can’t force myself to continue, i get at least up to episode 6. i watched this because i like the two leads and the male 2nd lead looks hot. After MSOAN, i just don’t want to look into any JGS project.

2. LTM – i did force myself but i only up to episode 6
3. Love Rain – just watching the teaser made me hide under the cupboard.
4. Dr Jin – i am crazy downloading the episodes i never intend to watch. I just want to watch this cuz of JJ. PMY is a damper as much as the acting of SSH. but then i love to look at the pretty, SSH, JJ.
5. Big – well, i almost cried on how much a waste this drama is for me. I feel like i was always anticipating something to happen but never did. I kept wondering till now how a Hong Sister’s drama, Gong Yoo and LMJ could be such an epic fail.
6. Runaway Plan B – after Full House, I just can’t watch anything with Rain on it.
7. Baker King – there is too much makjang (if there is such a case), i never touched the drama even if i love JW so much.
8. Fashion King – didn’t even started the drama. Bali redux. ugh!

dramas listed here are those that stand out.

currently i am so into Faith. yeah, LMH kinda not delivering best and KHS is shrilly but i can get past that because i like the anime-ish tone of the drama. hope it continues to improve.

For kdramas, I usually give them a few more episodes. For kdramas I watch while they’re airing, I tend to not watch the first episode of a drama at first (will read the recap) and skip right to the second episode. If the second episode grabs my attention, then I’ll go revisit the first episode (though sometimes I don’t even go back to episode one). First episodes tend to feel predictable and characters tend to feel exaggerated because the story is trying to make sure the audience really “gets” the set-up. And that’s also when all the really sad stuff happens if the characters have a sad past or situation. So having that mediocre first episode set up the beginning of a particular drama just ruins my experience of that drama a little bit. Maybe I’m just weird!

If I start a drama, I try to give it at least 4 or 5 episodes. I think a drama crescendos into its peak usually around episodes 3 through 8, so a drama really needs to lay out the good stuff by then. Since I read recaps, I do revisit scenes of dramas I’ve given up on.

For Taiwan dramas, I tend to break my “skip the first episode” tendency and give up earlier. I think I gave up on Love Forward after half an hour.

I haven’t watched Faith yet due to putting in more hours at work. I’m really interested in it due to the writer-director pair, but Lee Min Ho did have me worried. Maybe it was my Kang Ji Hwan bias. He was in that role and I liked the images that were leaked a few years ago of him filming it. I’m planning to watch Faith this weekend and hope it will click with me even if it didn’t for you!

I am actually quite liking Faith. The visuals, the music, and the characters definitely have me invested. Hope LMH finds his bearing…he seemed a bit nervous in E1. As for KHS, yes, she’s screechy but I don’t find her annoying (yet).

I’ve dropped an embarrassing number of shows but these are ones I dropped this year: FBRS, TMETS, RTP, Big, and Gaksital. Dunno if I’ll complete AGD.

1. Faith – I cringed during so many scenes! Thank God, I’m not the only one who dislike it!
2. Dr. Jin – Do I need to say more?
3. The King 2 Heart – I liked both leads but the drama wasn’t just my cup of tea!
4. Love Rain – I thought I would like the indie-kind-of-feeling but the first episode told me otherwise.

Oh….I actually have a longer lists of things I won’t even touch, no need to watch a lick of…like Faith. Just based on Kim HeeSun sucky awful in everything she touches alone.

Then there r things I do wish it be good even know it probably will be awful. To the Beautiful You ep1 was meh for me. It’s not horrible acting, but the fault is totally in the directing, it is channeling to me the narration is more caught on getting the plot across than building the fluffy atmosphere/mood for all the tiny swoony beats, ie PD is hopelessly clueless with shoujo.

Unless someone tells me TTBY has the second coming of Oguri Shun, I’m not even going to try it. 😎

But in the dropped like a rock department, for me Faith is gone, A Gentleman’s Dignity lasted more than an episode but got ditched, Athena – tossed, Rooftop Prince nope-ed it’s way out, Hanbando – gone, probably a few more, Dr. Jin – oh yeah, that went straight to the crazy farm. I’ve gotten faster with the delete button these days.

I rarely ever drop after 2 eps (I give most dramas up to 5 eps) but this year that prize goes to INR2012 I absolutely hated Yul-mae. The boys were great but the women grinded my sanity to dust.
City Hunter I abhorred but watched for a friend. Truly a regret of my drama life. I have very little faith in LMH’s ability to choose decent projects but I am intrigued by Faith. Definitely plan to check it out.

Oh thanks ockoala…i feel so mch better now! I ve been seeing so many good reviews of LMH and Faith everywhere (mostly by LMH fangrls)…i thot i was d only one who is hating it! But I feel so good now after reading this! And srsly who thot of pairing these two together??? And that female sucks big time in acting…she is worse than LMH!

I must really have tolerance for dramas since I usually stick with them even when they area terrible (Cain and Abel) but I simply couldn’t get past the first two episodes of Biscuit Teacher and Star Candy. I’d have suffered through it too but I don’t really like either of the leads (I like some of the dramas they were in but looks like I can’t watch a drama just because of them) the execution was not to my taste and I failed to see the humour.

Dr Jin.. The 1st itself was enough to make me lose complete interest…
Faith is being very bland for now.. but i might try a few more eps to decide if its worth continuing..
other drams that just jumped to my never see again list were
Playful Kiss, personal Taste and yeah not to forget FLower boy raymun shop..
utterly awful..

ok…it must be just me…..but I so don’t agree with you on all of your list above…..Rooftop Prince (I loved as a romantic comedy-I thought Yoochun did really well), Flower boy ramen shop, and Gentleman’s Dignity I loved!!!! Heartstrings wasn’t that bad, not as good as You’re Beautiful by any means. Faith I must admit isn’t pulling me towards it, the woman just drives me nuts…don’t know how many times I told her to just shut up! Haeundae Lovers I stopped watching after the first 15 minutes. I am looking forward to Arang and Ji Joon’s series and movie. But I guess that’s what makes life interesting…we don’t all like the same things 🙂

I’d like to include World’s Within in the drop list. I don’t have a list — they are really that dropped from my radar. Can somebody enlighten me what exactly OTP stands for? I know to what it refers to but what the initials stand for? Sorry but im just a butterfly, flitting in and out of kdrama blogs.

I agree with your most of the list. I loved City Hunter, however, in order to get to it, you have to endure it for 6 episodes (I only did it for LMH). It gets better only after episode 6. The drama is flawed but it’s packed a punch for me when I chose to ignore the flaws (mostly in first 6 episodes).

My list of dropped dramas are probably endless. I am queen of dropping drama within 10 minutes. Some of my list of recent kdramas at a random order (some more than few episodes):

I´ll never understand why a lot of dramas get called “bad” when they aren´t. I mean, I am certain there are actual bad dramas out there, but most of those I have seen mentioned in this thread really aren´t. Some of them I have liked quite a lot others not so much, but I´d never state my personal opinion as a fact and be snobbish about it. Especially because in most cases there are still a LOT of people unironically enjoying the drama. Why would I state my opinion as more factual than theirs?
I personally seem to like a few shows that are generally mocked. Even if some are flawed – if there´s something about it that I love I´ll love the whole show regardless of them. If it´s fun, not everything has to make sense to me. 🙂

On the other hand I´d often dislike dramas that are universally loved like “Full House”. Oh, and I personally think “My Girl” is one of the worst dramas I have seen: the acting, the second leads, the way the romance and story progressed, the music *shudders* and I could never actually feel or see the emotions between any of the characters (I remember laughing at the male second lead crying over the heroine because I found his love for her to come out of nowhere and be utterly unbelievable) but even though practically nothing in this drama worked for me, I wouldn´t go around calling it bad.

Some of the worst dramas for me:
Marry me Mary (so so bad)
Lie to me (how this drama can suck even with EUH and KJH is a mystery to me)
Only You (yuck!)
Dr. Jin
Dream high 2
Witch amusement
Midas

Some of the dramas that you have dropped really surprised me o_O City hunter is one of the best drama i have seen in a long time!! Evil abuji was the best!! As for personal taste i admit even i havent finished it yet..
As for AGD, i didnt think much of the first 2 epis either but the show really picked up! Its witty and fun!
Rooftop prince was my crack! The show was really good…the OTP was fantastic and the whole cast was perfect!
Heartstrings delievered exactly what it was supposed to…it never really had a meaty story to deliever…and it was entertaining till the end..not saying it was the best drama though…
Also you did not mention about Gaksital…its currently one of the best drama airing! The story is amazing and the actors are doing a fantastic job…try giving it a shot overlooking JW’s shouty” dialogue delievery…PKW is amazing in it!! And the caharacter Rie is just so layered!!
As for Faith, i really loved the first epi..the leading lady is not a bad actress..i dont know why you think that she is…the age difference is not a prob and neither is her acting…i like the conflict between the king and the queen and u cant wait to see what happens further in the story!
I still have to watch Araang and To the beautiful you…waiting for the subs..
I think we have really different taste when it comes to dramas…but i still like to read your posts^^

BIG, I know you love that drama Koala, but for me I just could not see it. On the other hand, I read your recap and stare at Gong Yoo.

Love Rain… BOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOORING.

Personal Taste….. no, just… NO.

Heartstring. I love Shin Hye and Yonghwa but I couldn’t.

Mary Stayed Out all Night. I think I have your same problem traying to show my love for Jang Geun Suk. I really love him! I SWEAR! He just need to pick better projects!

Dream High 1 and 2. I really try to like it. I don’t know. I think I had other expectations because I grew up in a dancing academy but the show did not convey the feelings for me.

Myung Wol the Spy. I think I don’t need to explain this further.

I do, I do. Don’t ask me why.

On the other hand, A Gentleman’s Dignity and Flower Boy Ramyun Shop are in my favourites list. Faith, I’ll keep watching. I think the story is good and, with everything you said before of the actress, I didn’t have ANY expectations of her so, no disappointments there! Lee Min Ho, I will see if he gets better in future episodes. After all is his first time doing sagaeuks. But I don’t worry because my crack addiction right now is Gaksital. I don’t need more!

OK I loved City Hunter and I hated Personal Taste. Faith seems to fall somewhere in the middle between those two on the love-hate scale. I don’t quite hate it but I don’t love it either despite WANTING to love it… I think Lee Min Ho is doing just fine, it’s his leading lady that I can’t stand… Kim Hee Sun IS all kinds of screechy and comes across as horribly whiny. I get it that her personality is supposed to be quirky and nowhere near the ideal, but I seriously believe that a much more talented actress could have conveyed that with a whole lot more subtlety and without coming across so very superannoying! >______<

"Arang and the Magistrate" on the other hand was awesome! Although I do find the dramatic parts way too dramatic (the mother flashback for example) so I hope they tone those moments down because they're a bit jarring. Anyway, I'm really happy that it seems to meet my high expectations so far ^^ *crossing fingers for the drama to continue being awesome* Regarding, To the Beautiful You, it was actually a very solid first episode. Good pacing and story plus good cast and likable characters… if the drama continues to hit the right notes, this could very well turn out into the fresh and breezy drama that Heartstrings was supposed to be.

I can’t think of the dramas that I’ve had to walk away from but Dr. Jin definitely and also a recent one that I just couldn’t take, I had to stop before the first episode ended: Take Care of Us, Captain. Everyone, who didn’t need to die, died. It was aggravating…
Omg, Marry me Mary and also Heartstrings were both terrible. I never really finished them. I agree with a couple of the replies:
I love City Hunter, and Personal Taste got better towards the end.
A Gentlemen’s Dignity – I just finished and I thought it was a very truthful drama of how immature men are and how finding love makes them less immature or aware of how immature they are. I thought the plot was really funny.
Rooftop Prince was a great drama to watch: the mystery of who the crown princess really was, was perpetuated throughout the drama and I loved that.

I’m gonna try and watch Faith – I just don’t understand, Lee Min ho is a decent actor and he’s just getting started, he isn’t even in a lot of dramas and then he does a drama that isn’t even good. After watching the trailer and then reading Ms. Koala’s comments on it, I guess I can only go into it hoping for the best. 🙂
Thank you Ms. Koala! You make my breaks a lot less boring!

It’s always interesting to read people’s opinions and how we can love one drama together, but differ on others… 🙁 I loved FBRS so much except actually the last final episode and that happens to me more often than not. I’ll either lose interest about half way or not like the last 1 or 2 episodes.

I can’t think of a drama that I stopped watching after 1 or 2 but I have quite a few that I couldn’t even get thru the 1st episode… Delightful Girl, MGIGH, Mary Stayed Out, The Moon that Embraces the Sun, Tamara Island, Oh! My Lady…

I have even troubles saying I’ve dropped Capital Scandal and Queen of Housewives cos I feel like everybody I know likes them and I’m the odd man out so I should watch them. Someday. They won’t defeat me, you know?

Big. I watched up to ep 12 and…gah, it seems stupid to drop it, but still. No can do.

There are more, though. Sometimes I watch dramas even if I don’t particularly like them (Heartstrings) but I had to make an exception for, well, Song Chang-ui! lasjdlakjsd But other times it’s a real pain (Big).

Out of the drams you mentioned, I love City Hunter and also AGD which,me, is the best drama with the best ending for 2012. Heartstring and Baby Faced Beauty are just okay and I was able to finish both. I dropped Flower Boy Ramyun after 4 episodes because both the main characters are very much annoying. I was able to finish Rooftop Prince but only fast forwarded the last 4 episodes just to know the ending.

Worst dramas for me are Mary Stayed Out All Night, Lie to Me, My Princess Dr. Jin and Big.

I actually loved almost all those drama’s! liked flower boy ramyun shop! loved rooftop and adored gentlemans! (nice to see a show that’s not just about teens romance) and i thought they did a good job on faith! hope they continue to good a good job! 🙂

I actually kind of love Faith, and I already ship those two like crazy (don’t ask me why, I honestly don’t know)! I also think she has every right to whine: she was kidnapped, hurt, and her life was threatened, all in one day.
I’ve actually never seen Lee Min-ho in anything before (though I did read the City Hunter recaps; that was quite thrilling), but I think he’s all right. He doesn’t seem to have connected with the character yet, and he can’t seem to emote with his eyes. But maybe he’ll get better! And her I also find all right, she’s expressive, and I think that was just how the character was written.

A drama I stopped after not even an episode was something called…”Romance Zero” or sth. like that, I don’t even remember. There were quite a few others, but I honestly can’t remember their names.

I dropped these dramas bec. they are boring , too lazy to wait for the eng subs , too little time , or just because :
Midas, Lie to me , thousand kisses , smile you , beloved , personal taste , boys over flowers , playful kiss goong s , dream high 1 and 2, royal family , time bet. dog and wolf , east of eden , iris , athena , dr. jin , equator man , gaksital , the musical , take care of us captain , glory jane , scent of a woman , and hundreds of dramas , hahaha ! too lazy to remember everything … but if you asked me what dramas did i rewatch for a number of times , that will be : coffee prince , Goong , nobuta wo produce , hana yori dango , kimi wa petto , hana kimi , and iswak 1 ^^ btw , this topic is interesting …made me post a comment again in your blog ..though I check it everyday …just too lazy to comment …but thanks a lot ! ps , I stucked through BIG until the end , but what a BIG disappointment ! I should have dropped it like the others 🙁

You’re able to watch 10 episodes of Dr Jin but you drop A gentlement Dignity because “so much immaturity and self-aware wittiness that was in truth witless.” ????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????

Easy. Dr. Jin knew it was stupid. It tried hard but it was born with only half a brain so couldn’t do more than what it was given. But it never tried to pass itself off as look-at-me-I’m-so-smart! Which is what AGD did. AGD is like that loser too-cool dude at the coffee shop that thinks he’s writing awesome poetry when all he’s doing is aggregating things people did long before him. The cardinal sin is thinking too highly of himself when he is merely passing off other talents as his own. I hate that more than I hate a drama that accepts its suckitude. I hope the wonders of the universe continue to amaze you. It amazes me, too.

I analyze a drama carefully to understand whether it’s for me or not even before it starts so I rarely drop dramas at start.Sometimes when I’m not sure about a drama I read recaps first and then I download them later(I dont like watching my dramas online, I usually dowload them and wait for subs to watch them)

One of my best friends decide to continue a drama if the first 15 minutes is good but I’m not like that cause I belive first 2 or 4 episodes are when you understand what you are watching completely.So I drop a drama when it gets too predictable or boring.As you all know nearly all K-dramas gets to be cliche towards the end.Dont undertand me wrong I love K-drama cliches when it’s done well BUT there are so many bad ones and they dont even make sense.They drag the story on forever.Because all those pointless misunderstandings the drama becomes boring, frustrating, and redundant.Specially towards the end, why all the drama when we know there will be like only two endings;1- they end up together, 2- they dont end up together because one of the leads is so NOBLE(!) he/she thinks not ending together is good for the other lead.And may conflicts and misundertandings can resolve in 2 minutes by TALKİNG TO EACH OTHER but nobody does that or it’s just used to drag the storyline .

After a while, after watching enough K-dramas sometimes you go ‘Arghh, This shit again?!Whats with Korean script writers and these awful endings?!’.You know, by episode six the leads will start realizing their feelings, episode 7-10 they start dating etc. 11-12 they are happy 13-14 something happens usually second leads do something evil (they are always clingy) and episode 16 everything resolves in one episode,in like last 15 minutes.Sometimes I cant take it because after every damn good drama you go like ‘Well,it started great but the ending is kinda…errr exactly as I expected;frustrating.It’s frustrating even when they end up together cause we dont get a proper reunion.PERFECT EXAMPLE:Feast of the Gods

City Hunter:The perfect example of the guy leaving the girl thinking that it’s for the better good of the girl, not allowing her to make a decision about what’s really good for her.
Heartstrings:The perfect example of dragging things and unnecessary noble sacrifice

I mean,look at the dramas you all list.The problems are all same:too much and too predictable cliches.I love K-dramas and cliches like ‘Awkward Drunken Piggyback Rides’ BUT when it’s overused I really stop watching at middle and wait until I cool/read recaps to understand whether things get better or not.Too many cliches therefore bad script and directing therefore dramas like Fashing Kind or Dr.Jin; the dramas you regret watching.

1. Secret Garden – naaah, not my cup of tea – i’m stuck with episode 1, not even a half, maybe 15 minutes into ep. Somehow, i can’t find it enough interesting to watch. Maybe there’s something really wrong with me 😀
2. Gumiho – I still have 3 maybe 4 episodes left and i can’t make myself to watch it. It got sooo boring that i just dropped it and have no desire to get back.
3. KOIZORA – Sweet Lord in heaven, that’s my arch nemesis. Watching this shit hurts my eyes and soul. I used to watch this as a punishment for bad grades. However, i’ve watched only 3 episodes of this insanely bad production.
4. BIG – Episode 12 is the last episode of this drama for me. I’m not going to finish it. Never. It breaks my heart, because i really loved this one, and it turned out to be very BIG disappointment to me, too.
5.ISWAK – NO. NEVER. I barely made it through episode 1.
6. Hana Kimi 2011 – I’ve wtched 8 episodes or so – I can’t remember exactly, because it was so boring that i literally fell asleep a few times.
7. Shining Inheritance – so boring it hurts. Even though I love LSG… no, I just can’t. It’s bad for my mental health.
8. Rescue – LOL, that was a good one – those boys as a firefighters, srsly? I dropped it on episode 5 maybe 6 – I don’t even remember.
9. Rooftop Prince – naah – 20 minutes into episode 1 and i was already bored to death. So… no, thank you.
10. Proposal Daisakusen – no matter how much i love YamaPi, it hurts my eyes and i have no desire to finish it.

These are the more significant ones – I don’t even count such amazing productions as Muscle Girl, Switch Girl, etc. [These are really crappy]

However – as a decent person I’ve made myself to watch till the end some of the dramas you’ve mentonied before.

1.Love Rain – all 22 episodes. So. Boring.
2. Personal taste – Geez, don’t even ask. It was really bad.
3. Playful Kiss – I actually love this one, even tough KHJ should stay away from acting 😀
4. MSOAN – I like this one – sometimes it gets boring and totally shitty, but still – main leads are just ADORABLE <3
5. I've also finished Binbo Danshi with Oguri Shun. And… If you haven't seen it – good for you, don't even try to start watching this crap. Storyline is just absurdal. Totally unrealistic, but not in the good dorama way – it's just stupid.

Faith is “sayonara” for me too. The acting is just bad, though Lee Min Ho looks so handsome. I want a drama where the leads are not just good-looking and are not just acting for the sake of acting. I want to feel their acting. I want to feel the emotions of the character they represent. I know that to make actors act out someone they aren’t is lying, but I want the actors to lie really, rally bad when acting so the scripts can come to life. If FAITH can convince me that they can fly with the characters and not drag them down, then I will continue to watch…

Chinese: Mainland and Taiwanese
Ru Yi
Bu Bu Jing Xin- I loved Gong and seeing a sane, nicer 4th prince was odd especially when I was so used to Yang Mi and Feng Xiao Feng. I’ll probably watch it again once the oddness that I felt seeing a different pairing wears off.
Tokyo Juliet- couldn’t stand Wu Zun’s dubbed voice. I also found the plot illogical.
Prince Turns into a Frog- I was always more of a Qiao En and Ethan Ruan fan just because I saw Fated to Love You first, but I also couldn’t stand Qiao’s En character in the first two episodes. I keep meaning to come back to it because everyone loves it and I simply can’t get past the first 5-6 episodes and yet I love Ming Dao and Qiao En separately.

and kdrama cliches apply to Taiwanese dramas… quite a bit. I can name several Taiwanese dramas that have the main lead doing an illegal u-turn at some point… oh and the love square which always drives me up a a wall.

Also.. mainland wise.. wuxia ones.. some at least. I need to be in the right mood to watch wuxia and then I’ll usually marathon several back to back, which is why it’ll take me forever to watch them because I’m not in the mood. I usually watch wuxia when I want more serious stuff. I still need to finish Young Warriors of the Young Clan but since I know what happens to them historically there’s a part of me that doesn’t want to continue just because I know there won’t be a happy ending.

As for XuanYuan Jian.. still watching it.. and I’m not quite sure why. I watched it purely because I loved Chinese Paladin and thought this may have the same vibe except it doesn’t.. and yet I still keep watching it for some random reason I don’t know. It is starting to get interesting in the later episodes though.

Korean
– Lie to Me: I usually like most stuff Yoon Eun Hye is in, but I actually really disliked her character in it and after a while, the plot itself and the gaping holes in it made me abandon it completely.

Jewel Bibimbap- abandoned around episode 20 something ish.. and that was because while I found it interesting, all the family members annoyed me and I had no interest watching them bickering continuously for 50 episodes.

Bad Guy- actually abandoned it toward the end, right around episode 11.. just because of how bad the plot was going. I ended up watching the 2 episodes to see if it was worth watching and the ending. It could of been so good, the acting was superb, the cinematography was pretty dang good as well and yet.. it went down the drain so fast after the main male actor got conscripted.
Heartstrings- Yong Hwa’s acting… it was just bad.
King2Hearts- wasn’t in the mood for it at the time. I was in a wuxia kick when that drama aired so at the time.. I just wasn’t paying much attention to Korean stuff and if I did.. it geared more toward action and not romance.
Dream High 2- Dream High 1 it was not.
Manny- dropped within the first 10.. wasn’t the right time for me to watch it…
Take Care of Us, Captain- I watched the first episode.. hated how melodramatic and un-realistic it was.. and stopped watching. Also.. found the likelihood of a really young genius co-pilot highly unlikely if not impossible so the illogical-ness of that bothered me as well.

Romantic Princess- It bothered me how skinny Angela Zhang was in it.. I also don’t usually like most stuff with Wu Zun just because of how bad his acting is. Hana Kimi is an exception because I loved that one.
Hi, My Sweetheart- over-acting on Show Luo’s part and on Rainie’s part.
Drunken to Love You- I know everyone loved this drama, but I ended up not really liking either character or even really caring about what happened to them in the long run and thus abandoned it half-way through.

I am no quitter. Thus I would watch a drama until the finale just in case, you know, the ending would save it all. Quite rare, actually. Even in my k-drama addiction era.

Yet since my time is not expendable and my emotions quite precious, I don’t start a drama unless I have enjoyed the first episodes’ recaps. Usually this kind of experience amounts to merely a few throughout a whole year.

Faith is all right. Not great but all right. The character of Min Ho is written as unmotivated, slacking warrior; he just hasn’t found what to be passionate about. I think his wounded pride might lead for more animation in the future. The first two episodes were kind of disjointed.

I regret watching Big and I do, I do. I watched Beloved until the end – huge regret about wasting 16 hours just in memory of Alone in Love, which I enjoyed.

I just watch Faith. Due, to I like the cast except the main lead and lead actress. Therefore, I am just gonna watch it just to see if it good and pray to the kdrama gods that it will not be dr. wtf jin 2.0

Haven’t watched all that many dramas but secret garden I dropped after second episode. A gentleman’s dignity . Also i do i do, although am indifferent to IDID rather than hate it outright. Both SG and AGD cos can’t stand the female leads

Miss K unnie!! Hello!! *waving like a 5 year old* Mhahahha I love your recess, because they always make me think and do some “soul research”…

The question here is, the dramas I drop right off the bat, right? Well if that is the case…None! But, I have watched a few that really; really give me the creeps…. But first let’s talk about yours, shall we??

[I][B]Faith [/B] [/I] haven’t watch it…Not verdict yet Btw why he have a this era police shield? Is he going to play time cop on me? Really? Weird and totally awkward…

[I][B]A Gentleman’s Dignity [/B] [/I]-Totally love it! Except how they (I mean the characters) managed the whole I-have-a-19-y/o-kid-I-dump-you-coz-I-know-you-will-dump-me…Eh really? It wasn’t supposed that they are “adults and grownups” and they can manage that kind of things better than anyone else?? Another thing that I really didn’t like was the proposal in the final episode…When that drama becomes a musical? Except from those 2 things, to me this drama was wonderful…But that is me, right… Nuff said!!

[I][B] Flower Boy Ramyun Shop [/B] [/I] – I love Cha Chi Soo… I mean that man(the actor) do something so beautiful with his eyes, that he catch me…even if the whole drama was down hill, I couldn’t stop myself from watching… Cha Chi Soo, had me at I-hate-women-that-cry!! Really!!! Mhahahhaha And Chef and the other characters wasn’t bad at all…well teacher was always in oblivion but that is who she is….And I totally love, when the main lead is a heart-cold-ice-prince-premium-jackass and by a joke from destiny, with a little pain and whole lot of love, become this prince charming worth dying for….ala Secret Garden, You’re Beautiful, Greatest Love…I am a freak…*whispering* I know!!!

[I][B]Rooftop Prince[/B][/I]- I love it…But it was my love for the entourage, and what they face daily that get me going… The whole mystery and the death of the princess, really was a little dragged till the end…but over all I like it and watch it all… And the premise that a love that can last centuries is my kind of drama… I know, I am a hopeless romantic…there is too much twisted suffering in real life, to find it in dramas too…My dramas are an escape from the real world…so please don’t make them suffer…much….And the “evil second leads” where over the top!! Really, how much you can hate some one? Is hate a feeling that can last centuries too? Is hate so powerful?

Mine:
This are the ones that I put on hold… for some reason, I don’t find myself to continue watching…But I don’t find it in me, to “just give up” on them!!! I really don’t understand why…
[I][B]Big[/I][/B]- I put it on hold after watching 8/16 episodes…And for some reason I can’t force myself to keep watching…Even I know how it ends and all the story (coz, I read the recaps, but actually watching it, I can’t do it) Still thinking if I dropped or not.

[I][B] City Hall [/I] [/B]-Happened the same, but this drama I found it interesting, but I put it on hold. Episodes watched: 8/20

[I][B]Drunken to Love You [/I] [/B]-Episodes watched: 9/18. Can’t watch anymore, even if I know the ending! What the hell was with the guy with an UFO in his head?? Really??

[I][B]Gokusen [/I] [/B]-Watched and love the anime version…the live version not so much… Episodes watched: 1/12

[I][B]Lie to Me[/I][/B]-Exactly the same as [I][B]Big[/I][/B], can’t watch it anymore, even if I know the ending and commented in the recaps! And I was demented about this one, but having to wait till-next-week killed me-not-so-softly. Episodes watched 8/16.

[I][B]Manny [/I] [/B]-I lost the love of this one…but for some reason I don’t find the courage to drop yet… I want to end it…I just don’t know how. Episodes watched: 12/16.

[I][B]Mary Stayed Out All Night [/I] [/B]-This one, I know you love it Unni, but I couldn’t continue watching…Can’t drop it, though… I don’t know why?? I know the ending… The whole I’m married to you, but I live and love another man, it was just too much for me… Episodes watched: 10/16

[I][B]P.S. Man [/I] [/B]-I love this drama, is just that I don’t find a site where I can end watch it. The drama sites I know, doesn’t have it. Blue Lan’s character was good… I’m kidding!! Mhahahhahah I think!! Episodes watched: 5/21.

[I][B]Que Sera, Sera [/I][/B]-I love this drama, but for some reason the whole, I love you but I want to be with her, for Money…was stupid and make puke all over the place…But at the same time, I just wanted to slap some senses to Eric’s character…he was the most obnoxious of all… Episodes watched: 9/17

[I][B]Sunny Happiness [/I] [/B]-I love this drama, I even know the ending, but for some reason, I couldn’t find it in me, to keep watching…10/25.

These ones are the ones that I really drop it. And for the life of me, I want to erase them from the drama land forever *echo (ever, ever, ever)

*Pause for dramatic effect*

[I][B]Boys over Flowers [/I] [/B] Episodes watched 10/25. I really don’t know why the commotion about this one is. I really hate it! The main female lead; literally KILL the “drama fan” of me, in this one! I mean, not even, Robot Kid (from Playful Kiss), Lee Min Ho’s curly hair and the little angel in Padam Padam, keep me watching…She was so obnoxious that she really gives me the creeps…

[I][B]Coffee House [/I] [/B] – Can someone please, explain this one to me, like I was a 5 year old…please!!!! Episodes watched 3/18.

[I][B]Stairway to Heaven [/I] [/B]-Too melodramatic for my taste. Too much pain and suffering…When they were going to be happy…*grabbing PD, from the shirt collar* why they were suffering so much? Did they kill kittens in their previous life, to suffer so much in this one? Really? Too much for me, too much… Ottoke!!! Episodes watched: 6/20.

From all the dramas that I watched, these are the ones that I definitely want to buy and have them with me, forever…

[I][B]Oh! My Lady [/I] [/B] – I love how he struggles with his career, being a father and become a human being. I love how Gae Hwa was always beside him, not only to comfort him and take care of Ye Eun, and Min Woo, but how she always give him her 2 cents and she always managed to put some senses in his-not-so-good-brain! I love how he changed from a mediocre actor/human being, to this man capable to conquer the world and the woman who help him all the way!!

[I][B]Snow White/ Taste Sweet Love [/I] [/B] – I love how in every moment of weakness, he was there for her. And how he was capable to find things that she even didn’t know she had. I love the fact that when he was hurting, she was by his side… I love that even when he took a step back, she did not. I love everything about this drama…

[I][B]A Gentleman’s Dignity [/I] [/B]-I love it so much that I definitely want it!! This one keeps me on the edge of my seat…even if the plot twist were a little weak…

[I][B] 9 Ends 2 Outs [/I] [/B] – Love it!! The whole premise of “friends who become lovers, who become friends, who become lovers again” was so wonderful to me, that I dream it about this drama! Watched in a marathon style in 3 days and even tell my brother about it… I love it!!

For me, I think that Faith was more interesting than Arang and Magistrate. I just can’t seem to get into A&M. The first episode was alright but when I watched episode 2, I was playing with my phone half the time.
To the Beautiful You was good, better than what I expected.
But all three of these new dramas didn’t really spark much interest as much as Bridal Mask and Ghost did. Just watching the first episodes of those two dramas, I felt like I found 2 jewels! I knew I was going to love the two dramas…but I’m not so sure about these new ones.

Maybe you don’t watch “A&M” carefully or have the desire to like Faith more. Actually, “A&M” has a very interesting plot containing many mysterious things, superb cinematography and fun moments. These trades can totally attract most of the viewers who find & watch the interesting stories with great acting skills from the actors. Hope you can enjoy it in the near future. “A&M” is a must-watch for us now^^

Gee! Why don’t you tell us what you really think? Love this…thanks. Getting ready to watch Faith and have already read a rave review, so am anxious to see where I will be after eps 1 & 2. Liked AGD, but it was 4 eps too long and had a juvenile ending. Wish I didn’t have City Hall and Joseon X Files to use as my standards for KDramas.

wow I totally agree with you on all except I Need Romance 2012, on which I am still undecided 😛 I absolutely love Lee Minho but the first 2 ep of Faith was just….urk. Not fun. Arang and the Magistrate, on the other hand, was amazing from the get go.

I think you should give a chance for ep.3 and more..it’s totally worth it..
I thought same as you for the 1st ep but more I watch it the more i like it..and LMH and KHS just got the chemistry on ep.3..
I totally so into them in this drama..:)
although the story it doesn’t make sense and same as Rooftop Prince,QIHM,and Dr.Jin but the story goes so well with the main character..